Beep. Beep. Beep. Warning: Solar Charge Level Low.

WALL-E sighed groggily and slowly slid out of his compartment. All was still dark within his truck but for the pale sunlight shining in through the makeshift skylight near the entrance. He stared at the gaping hole in his roof, almost wistfully, as if wishing he could simply unfold his solar panels on the spot and receive his much needed recharge … but it wouldn't be enough, not nearly enough, and he knew it. So he pulled on his treads and rolled towards the entrance.

He hesitated, glancing behind him. The egg-shaped silhouette of EVE was barely visible as she hovered there, still in sleep mode. His optics drooped softly as he gazed at her still frame, warmth blossoming inside him just behind his power display. The same warmth he always felt when he looked at her.

He hoped he wouldn't wake her with the racket he was about to make.

He clasped the button that would lower the ramp and pushed it as lightly as he could. It made no difference; the sound of gears moving and hydraulics straining filled the confined space as loudly as they would have if he had slammed his shovel-hand onto the switch with all of his might. Slowly the wall before him extended outward, and he was met with a blast of light to the face.

WALL-E blinked a few times, his optics recalibrating to compensate for the natural light. Ah, that was better …

A brilliant sunrise blasted the unusually clear horizon in an explosion of color, and the robot was sorely tempted to just sit there and admire the view, had his energy meter not beeped again and brought him back to reality.

He jumped a little at the sound, and quickly glanced behind him. EVE was still hovering in sleep mode, unperturbed by the sudden noise or light. He sighed in relief and rolled around the outside of his truck along a second ramp that would take him to the roof.

The Axiom rested a mile or so behind him; all was quiet and calm. It was too early for there to be any humans out and about. As WALL-E unfolded his solar panels and began to charge, he couldn't help but feel a pang of loneliness as the silence pressed in on him, broken only by a slow beep here or there that indicated the energy meter on his display was rising.

It had been two weeks since they had landed in the ancient docking bay; two weeks since humanity had first set foot on Earth in seven centuries. Two weeks since he had nearly been deactivated – permanently – and since the Extra-terrestrial Vegetation Evaluator down below – his EVE – had repaired his body and restored his memory.

And what two weeks they had been! Shortly after landing they – robots and humans alike – had set out to restore the immediate area to habitable conditions (there was still the very serious issue of refuse lying everywhere); a feat which took the group of WALL-A from the bowels of the ship all but two days to accomplish; the giant cubes were then transported back into the Axiom for incineration. Then they had proceeded to carry out the numerous escape pods on the sides of the ship out onto the cleared field to serve as temporary housing for those who had grown tired of the constant comfort and service back aboard the most (about half of the passengers). The rest remained in their cabins, but returned to the outdoors everyday afterwards, visibly eager to explore and eventually move out in their own good time.

Then they had faced their most difficult task yet; one that they were currently still undertaking: basic survival. With the help of their robot companions it was relatively simple to glean the essentials – fire, water, food – but none of the humans knew what to do without their constant aid, and this was a matter McCrea had taken upon himself to correcting. As far as WALL-E knew the captain would spend the majority of his time back on the captain's deck, researching everything he could think of on the Axiom's computer, writing everything down on a holo-pad, and then attempting to act it out. This was often easier said then done; when he had researched how to start a fire, he was completely baffled by how rubbing two sticks against each other could create a spark. WALL-E and EVE had remained by his side well into the night as he toiled with the task, and were the only ones who finally witnessed his success.

Unfortunately a strong gust of wind had passed by that very moment and snuffed out the new flame, but the captain had been ecstatic nonetheless, and had proceeded to show the rest of the colony how it was done the following day.

There was still much more to be done, though; much more to be re-discovered and applied, but even in the short span of a fortnight one couldn't deny that progress was being made. And it was that progress that gave the humans their strength and perseverance, and was what WALL-E admired most about the newcomers.

His solar meter chimed that it was full, and now he realized he was fully awake, and ready for the new day. He folded his panels back up, shook himself a little so as to fully rid sleep from his system, and rolled back down the runway to his truck.

Hal, his faithful cockroach, was nowhere to be seen; WALL-E assumed that he was still sleeping; probably buried inside the BNL sponge cake he had unwrapped for him the night before. He sighed contently as he peeked inside his home, savoring everything he saw. It all seemed different now that he was no longer alone, now that he had EVE … it was all so much better than before, and his optics moved upward in an invisible smile.

It was time for him to get moving, though – there was work to be done. He grabbed his collection box from the corner and slung it over the extendable hook on his back; he was all set. One more thing, though … he rolled quietly towards EVE, who was still in sleep mode, and sat there for a moment, taking her in.

"Eee-vah," he sighed contently. He placed his hand on her side, where her fins would retract, and imagined coming home later on that night, to be with her. He leaned in and touched her shoulder with his forehead, as a parting-kiss, and then turned around as quietly and smoothly as his treads would allow. He exited the truck and raised the ramp back in place again.

He rolled off into the city remains with an unusual bounce in his step; happy for the new day, and the promise it held. He pushed the play button on the recorder built into his chest, next to his display.

"Put on your Sunday clothes …"